About 5,000 Chinese police have descended on a factory in the country’s north after a mass brawl among 2,000 workers. The factory – which assembles iPhone and other electronic components – was closed.
Court action
Two United States marines serving in Afghanistan will face a court martial after video emerged of them urinating on the bodies of dead Taliban fighters. Three other soldiers involved in the incident received administrative punishment last month.
Mountain tragedy
Rescuers have given up hope of finding three climbers missing after an avalanche on one of the world’s highest peaks in Nepal. The disaster on Manaslu, the eighth tallest mountain, killed at least nine people on Sunday.
Boat threats
Tensions between China and Japan over disputed islands in the East China Sea continue to simmer as up to 50 Taiwanese boats were driven out of Japanese territorial waters. Japan’s coast fired water cannon’s until the boats retreated.
Bloggers jailed
Three Vietnamese bloggers have been jailed for publishing “anti-state propaganda”. Dieu Cay, a high-profile blogger whose plight was raised by US president Barack Obama, was given a 12-year sentence for “destroying people’s trust in the state”.
Appeal fails
Radical British Islamic preacher Abu Hamza looks set to be extradited to the US after the European Court of Human Rights rejected an appeal against the decision. Wanted over a plot to start a terror cell in the US, he could leave within weeks.
Virus concerns
A new respiratory virus similar to Sars, which spread in 2003, has been identified in the Middle East. One man is being treated in Britain after being transferred from Qatar. He is the second to contract coronavirus after a man died in Saudi Arabia.
Soldiers charged
Four Uruguayan soldiers have been detained, accused of abusing a young Haitian man while working in his disaster-ravaged country as a UN peacekeeper. The man claims he was raped by the men who face jail on “private violence” charges.
Islamists caught, killed
A crackdown on Boko Haram militants in Nigeria has killed 35 members. The army said up to 60 people were also arrested. The group has killed hundreds in a string of attacks against Christian targets, including one on Sunday which killed two.
Rare meeting
North Korea’s parliament will meet this week to discuss improvements to the country’s economy. It usually meets in April and a second session is rare. It comes after newly installed dictator Kim Jong-un reshuffled the top leadership.
Predictable outcome
Elections in Belarus have filled the nation’s parliament with supporters of president Alexander Lukashenko after opposition parties boycotted the poll. Although there was a 50 per cent turnout, 16 of the 110 seats had one candidate on the ballot.
IMF warning
The International Monetary Fund has warned Argentina of sanctions unless it produces favourable growth and inflation data. IMF head Christine Legarde said they risked a “red card”. Analysts said inflation is in the range of 24 per cent.
Post published in: World News